Installing a CB in the dash of a Trooper

I'd like to preface this article by saying that I had some very good inspiration for this project. Thank you Bruce!

In my last Trooper I had my CB mounted to the back of the console. That was fine because it was a 2 door and I almost never had anyone in the back seat. Before that I had it mounted to the side of the console, near the floor. This blocked the heater output on the passenger side and was less than optimal. This time around I decided to mount it in a sensible place: in the dash.

When I removed the stock stereo and CD player to install my Sony, I was left with a large hole in the bottom of the dash. This is where the factory CD player was mounted. This was the spot. The CB is actually the same width as the ash tray and I would have loved to mount it there, but the hole wasn't deep enough, and there is a metal support directly behind the ash tray.

After test fitting the CB by hand, I determined that I could fit it all the way to the left, if I trimmed the plastic at the back of the hole to allow the coax to exit. I then proceeded to mount the CB to the mount that the factory used to mount the CD player. The CD player mounts are two pieces (on each side), and I used the right had inner piece and the left hand outer piece. By doing this, I didn't need to to drill any holes.

Because the dash hole is larger than the CB, I needed to make a plate to fill the gap. I went to radio shack and purchased an 8x3x5 black project box. I traced the front of the factory CD player to get the right size, then cut it out with a utility knife. Next I traced the shape of the CB into the cutout. Again I cut it out with the utility knife. I also drilled a hole for a switch next to the CB. The switch there is to turn off my power antenna when I go offroading.

I did another test fit in the dash, and determined where on the CB the plate should be mounted. After that, I epoxied the plate to the CB. Another test fit, and I was set.

Because the speaker on the CB radio is now enclosed in the dash, I needed an external speaker. Radio Shack sells a small speaker for about $15 that was a perfect fit underneath the console. I screwed the mount to one of the blank panels next to the rear wiper switch.

Here you can see the completed install with the switch for the power antenna. The mic clip can be mounted almost anywhere, I plan in putting it on the side of the console, near the CB.

-Tad